Kevin Love: 'Everybody' was a target at Cavs meeting

The Cleveland Cavaliers are stuck in a midseason funk, and frustrations came to a head on Monday.

Author:
WUSA

Published:
6:19 PM EST January 23, 2018

Updated:
6:19 PM EST January 23, 2018

The Cleveland Cavaliers are stuck in a midseason funk, and frustrations came to a head on Monday.

In a team meeting, in which players apparently challenged the validity of Kevin Love leaving Saturday's humiliating defeat early, the Cavs aired some of their grievances.

"Did I feel like a target?" Love said at Tuesday's shootaround. "I think everybody, most people were a target. We're trying to figure this thing out. People hold themselves to a very high standard on this team, and we're a team that feels like we can compete at the highest level.

"Even if it's directed at me or at anybody else, you just hope that it helps, and that we can get better from it."

Cavs coach Ty Lue addressed the meeting as well.

"I don't know if it was needed, but now we've got to do something about it," he said.

He also said it was unfair of the team to criticize Love when the team yielded 148 points, which tied a franchise record.

"If Kevin was out there, we might have given up 170," he said. "Who knows, man. We got to be better, just got to stay together. We're being tested right now. This is when your true character comes out and the character of who you are as a person and as a player."

Love played only three minutes of the Cavs' humbling setback vs. the Thunder before leaving the game with an unspecified illness. Several players questioned the legitimacy of Love's illness, ESPN reported.

Citing a source, Cleveland.com reported that Love wasn't the only player called out during the contentious team meeting.

The Cavaliers have lost 10 of their last 14 games.

The Cavs' run of futility comes after the team had won 18 of 19. Before their recent skid, the Cavs were 1½ games behind the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference standings.

As of Monday, the Cavs are six games behind the East-leading Celtics and four games behind the second-place Toronto Raptors.